Turnagain and again and again and again...

Hi family!!

So I am now TWENTY. Yep. Only two more obnoxious teenagers left I guess.. ;) I had a great birthday in case you were wondering!!! We had four lessons and did some service out in the sun- I got sunburnt which is almost unheard of in Alaska! :) I was pretty thrilled in case you were wondering :) Glad you had a good day as well! Sounds like everyone had a great time hanging out together! :)

So I absolutely love my new ward already. I still really miss Sitka, and there will always be a special place in my heart there, but there is a ton of work to do in my new area so we have been really really really busy!!! :) I think I told you this last week, but we're opening the ward to sisters (i.e. we're both brand new to this ward) so it's good to have a fresh start! I have just been blown away with how missionary minded they are and how there are so many people with great potential! We might be having a couple baptisms this transfer, but don't quote me on that. :)

It's weird being back in Anchorage, it feels like Sitka is almost a dream, a faraway land, haha but I love being in the "big city". It's been a little hard to adjust to going faster than 40 MPH, Sister Platero keeps teasing me because I'm still in island mindset but she's helping me out. ;) haha

Sister Platero is great btw! She is Navajo and from New Mexico, she's a great missionary and such a hard worker, it's going to be a great transfer together! We get a long great and have lots of fun together. :) She's great at reading maps too so that's a blessing. :)

Well I love you all tons! Thanks for the letters, you know how I just love them!

Love,

Sister Hedelius

I'll be back again someday....

Liquid gold!

(Yes, I have permission to be emailing ya'll ;P)

Hi family,

Yep. I've been voted off the island. Back to the concrete jungle of Anchorage! It's been an incredible three months here in Sitka, I've met people I'll always remember and made memories I'll never forget. There is a completely new feel here in the Sitka Ward and I'm looking forward to hearing about the changes that will continue to be made. The faith of two sister missionaries can work miracles. I'll miss my young women, and I'll miss the small town feel and looking out to the water, and I know I wouldn't change these past three months for anything. 

So I'm back to Anchorage. I'll be in the North Anchorage Stake this round serving in the Turnagain ward with Sister Platero. I'll be whitewashing again and they haven't had sisters in that ward for a few  years so I'm excited to see how sisters can help the good people of the Turnagain Ward. Sister Frazier is staying here and Sister Hewitt taking my place. I'm so excited for them and to know the work here is in good hands.

News for me this week: I'm changing my major to agriculture. Haha (just kidding mom) Although I am a pro goat shearer now. I'll make sure to send pictures so you can judge my shearing job. Shout out all my brothers that have let me practice shearing their hair so I could develop those necessary skills I'm currently using on my mission. ;) It was super fun-dad you now have permission to get goats so I can shear them. :)

We also got permission to go hiking twice this week!!! We went hiking with the young women on Thursday to get them all certified for girls camp. It's so green!! Like even the trunks of the trees are just covered in green! I love it :) We also went on a hike with the Relief Society yesterday and two nonmembers and two less actives came! Such a success! Glad I can now say I've been hiking in Sitka. :)

In main flight at the raptors center

Well I love ya'll lots! Stay safe and enjoy my birthday for me. ;) Ya'll can still celebrate and send me pictures. :)

Cool eagles!

Love,

Sister Hedelius

P.s. Next week I won't be a 19-year-old sister missionary anymore. :( It's bittersweet.

P.p.s. I'll still be getting on emails tomorrow probably late afternoon time.

AND>> back again. :)

HEY!

So my week "vacation" to Juneau was pretty good, always good to be back! A week is a long time to be away from your area, and I'm glad to be able to get back to work!!!

So church yesterday was really good! The Stake President and "Stake Pilot" were in town! Also, a senior couple missionaries ferried in because they called a new seminary teacher here in Sitka, so lots of great people in town. It was certainly a huge answer to prayers. The Stake President mentioned that he will be back soon and do everything he can to continue to strengthen the ward here. The faith of a few sister missionaries can work wonders-my testimony of fasting has really be strengthened here!

Sunset from Sitka apartment

ALSO as my picture shows, Stacey from Anchorage was in town yesterday!!! So fun to see her, she's moving down south so it was probably the last chance I had to see her. Fun to catch up with her and see how things have been the past few months.

So Saturday, Elder and Sister Waldron (the senior couple) took us out to dinner which was really nice of them, and when we were leaving we saw Adam and Jen! (a couple we met on the ferry when Sister Frazier and I first got to town!) We had been wanting to run into them, and sure enough we did! So we got their information and will be able to contact them! Also, when we were leaving to go back to the car, two men from down south that were fishing for the weekend, stopped us on the street and started asking us a ton of questions. (Do you believe Jesus Christ to be your Lord and Savior? Do you really???) It seemed to be more of an attack at first, but Elder Waldron was near by and came and started talking to them with us. It turned out to be a really positive experience!!! The men ended up being really complimentary to us about the church and one even said something like, "if the whole world could just pattern themselves after the church we would be a lot better off!" Haha yep, the church is inspired of God, I'll agree with that!! Hahah!! :)

It's week six! (Can you believe I've been in Sitka for 11 weeks now??) So I'll letcha know what's happening to me next week, but if I don't email till a little later, it's probably a sign that I'm headed out.. :( I sure love this place. I know a place of my heart will forever be in Sitka. I just love it so much and am so grateful for the blessing I have a had to serve here. I was thinking about the timing of life this week. Before my mission, I briefly considered waiting to not leave for a mission until sometime this summer, but I felt very strongly that I needed to put my papers in asap and get going. Being in Sitka, I've realized why I needed to be here at this time. I know I wouldn't have been sent here if I would have put my papers in later, and I would have missed out on meeting several families that are moving next month. I'm so grateful for the Lord's timing in my life and the blessing I've had to serve!!

Well I love you all so much, Thanks for all you do for me!

Love, 

Sister Hedelius

Sitka's swan lake! :)

It's been a "killer whale" week!

 On the ferry!

Hi!

I just saw two wild killer whales and a humpback (I think) whale!!! Woot woot! :) I almost jumped in to ride them around like they do at SeaWorld, but I remembered that missionaries shouldn't swim, so I refrained.. ;) Wouldn't that have been a great picture though?! Oh well.. :)

 

How we take district pictures in Alaska :)

So hello from Juneau! I'll be here till Friday or Saturday and then I'll be back to Sitka for at least a week (it's transfers calls time again). It's a little overwhelming every time coming off the island, but it was great to see the Juneau sisters again! I'll be staying here with them while Sister Frazier goes to Missionary Leadership Council! It's been fun because there are several people from Sitka that want us to visit people here in Juneau so we'll be able to meet friends and families of the Sitkans! 

So this week was good! P and J are both doing really well! It's hard leaving them this week to be here in Juneau but we were able to talk to them both yesterday and we'll be able to text them and check up on them so I'm grateful for that! Glad to have a cell phone! Don't know what missionaries did before them.. :) 

Well I love ya'll!! Thanks so much for what you all do for me!

Love,

Sister Hedelius

Picture I took on the Fourth of July! We had a picnic
and it was so pretty we just had to take a picture! :)



 Sariah and I at young women this week

The thermometer on our car is broken.. haha but
 I thought this was funny that it said it was this hot.. ;)





Yooho!

Hey everyone!!                  

First things first, Happy July!! :) So excited for Independence Day this week! For those of you who asked, yes Alaska is still pretty foreign BUT we do celebrate the 4th of July. ;) Sounds like it's pretty fun here in Sitka. Hoping it will be a great opportunity to talk to lots of people and get out in the community! And I will not be watching any fireworks because they have to have them at midnight so it's dark enough to see them.. haha so think of me when you're watching them this week. ;) 

It's been another great week! The Juneau sisters came in to go on exchanges so that was great! We got a lot done and were able to teach lots of people thanks to them! It felt overwhelming to have so many missionaries around even though it was only four.. haha .. don't know what I'm going to do when eventually I go back to Anchorage!! I'm enjoying being on an island a lot to say the least. ;) But Sister Frazier will be flying in to Anchorage next week because she's a Sister Training Leader so I'll be hanging out with the Juneau sisters in a trio next week again (This is like the third time going to Juneau since I got here... haha) So I'll have to get use to having all the Juneau missionaries around.. all six of them! :P

Got to see P twice this week! We'll be seeing him again tonight. We were suppose to see him yesterday but he forgot and went fishing. (I wish I had a dollar for every time I've heard that one- haha :) ) So we'll be seeing him tonight and he promised that he would cook up some of the fish he caught to make up for it too so that's great. ;) We are also having fish tomorrow with one of my favorite families in the ward!-The Fs! Also J and L invited us over for fish later this week! So that's at least three times this week! We also have two fish in the freezer that M gave us that we need to cook up. :) I'll probably be going through fish withdraws when I get off the island..

Also got to see Jk which was a blessing! Seeing Jk and L is a highlight! Jk is progressing great-got to teach the restoration this time! Teaching the first vision is probably my absolute favorite thing to teach, there is such a power as the spirit testifies that it's true!!!

T is going out of town with Jq for the next few weeks so we'll miss him :( But hopefully he'll be back before the end of the transfer because you never know what's going to happen! 

So things are going good! I love being a missionary. Had several experiences this week that made me so grateful for the life I have and the knowledge of the truth.

Being out here has really made me realize how grateful I am for a family that can be together forever. There just aren't as many strong tightly knit families as I'm use to out here and it has so much increased my testimony in the power of our family being together. I know I'm personally so grateful to have each one of you in my life! I just love each of you so much-the difference in each of our personalities and yet our similarities that make us a family is so amazing, the best part is that I get to spend forever with you people! I am so lucky. :) (That includes you A and C!!) 

Fireweed-isn't it gorgeous?!

 Sometimes it's just too much work to name a creek!

I love you all so so much. Thanks for the support and love you continue to show. I am so blessed to have each of you in my life! Have a great week and have a great Fourth!

Love,

Sister Hedelius

Sitka sunset!



This is a salmon berry-they grow all over! They remind me a lot of raspberries but not quite that sweet, still good though! One sister missionary says she liked to go "Salmon Berry Tracting" which means she picks what street to tract based of where the salmon berries grow.. hahaha

Love it here!  It rains just about everyday. 
It is so green!



This man is standing up while canoeing!

Typical Sitkan bumper sticker-fun fact for the week, there is a higher concentration of brown bears on the island that I live on (Baranoff island) than anywhere else in the world! Cool huh? I think there was about 2 bears per every square mile. Still haven't seen a wild one though, they're usually smart enough to stay out of town.